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A couple of common stereotypes of roller derby are the hard hits and crazy clothes, but there’s more to these skating divas of Route 66 Roller Derby than that.

To players like Amanda Garrison (TurtlesHell), it’s an escape. To Amanda Davidson (Bi-vacious), it’s a passion. To Kendra McClure (Pinky Mingo), it’s a family away from home. To Page Slater (Booty Kaboom), it’s a place to be herself. And to the average fan, it’s a place to watch 10 women go head-to-head on skates with the occasional batch of violence.

In its next bout, Amarillo’s Route 66 Roller Derby team will mix it up with members from sister teams in Dumas, Pampa and Clovis, N.M., for a special demonstration “Goth vs. Rainbow” match at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Amarillo Civic Center North Exhibit Hall, 401 S. Buchanan St.

What is roller derby?

Roller derby isa five-on-five contest. Four girls on each team are known as “blockers,” and one is designated the “jammer.” The jammer is the point-scorer of the bunch. The jammer starts at the back of the pack. Every time the jammer passes an opposing team member for the second time, she earns a point. The game consists of several two-minute-or-less jams in each 30-minute half.

“When the whistle blows everyone takes off,” Garrison said. “I want to keep their jammer from getting through while helping my jammer to get through. It’s kind of a cluster for a little while of hitting and skating.”

Davidson is a jammer on Route 66.

“I am the point scorer,” Davidson said. “My blockers keep the other girls off of me and keep the other jammer held back. You have to have speed. You have to be able to take two quick steps to get in front of an attacker and waste her momentum. It’s really hard. You have to work at it. You have to see the holes. It’s instinctive. You have to see it happen and do it, all in the same moment. It’s a very hard position. It takes years of honing. It’s taken me a good two full seasons to get as confident as I am.”

According to Garrison, scores can be all over the place.

“The scores vary so much,” Garrison said. “We’ve played games where we’ve won 300-and-something to 20, and we’ve played games where we’ve lost 78 to 110. It depends who you’re playing and what level of girls you’re playing against.”

The girls behind the skates

Garrison got her start skating as a way out of a rough stretch of bad luck.

“I lost my house to a tornado,” Garrison said. “I went through therapy for a little while. It did me some good but I still had some aggression that I needed to get out. I’ve always been a skater. I started out on quads, made the transition to blades, and went back to quads when I found derby. I put the skates on and haven’t taken them off.”

Garrison said Route 66 Roller Derby has become more than just a place to skate around.

“Off skates, we’ve all got each other’s backs,” Garrison said. “If I need help with my kids, I can call one of the girls up. When you lace up, everything else becomes obsolete. Nothing else matters, you’re on that track and you’ve got that derby high and you roll with it.”

Davidson, 23, said she loves the feeling of being on skates.

“It’s my passion,” Davidson said. “I’ve been skating since before I could walk. ... I’ve always been on skates. I’ve never been the athletic type. I never was very confident, nothing really stuck with me. Skating, I just lose myself in it.

“It’s real easy for me to come out here and do what I love to do,” she continued. “We really are all there for each other. We band together when we need to. It makes us strong as a derby family. We are all sisters here. We all take care of each other. We will do just about anything for each other.”

McClure helped start a new club in Dumas — the Moore County Missfits — after she returned to her hometown. Dumas Derby, a branch of the Amarillo club, is one of several smaller-city clubs popping up, including one in Pampa, the Route 66 Rolling Reapers.

“A dream was always to get bigger in the Panhandle,” McClure said. “To plant one in this little town, to plant one in that little town. We are just growing up a little baby here, where we are expanding our border.”

McClure said the girls are there to help each other out.

“It’s brought us a family we never thought we’d have,” McClure said. “It brings a positive outlet because life gives us crap, it really does. Some people turn to drugs, some people turn to sex, we turn to a sport and it’s a sport where we can express ourselves not only in the physical aspect, but also the flair with the skirts, tights and makeup. It’s a place where we can prove to ourselves and others that we can overcome adversity.

“I’ve had girls bring me groceries because I didn’t have anything for my kids. We come together. When we are done taking care of ourselves and we don’t have any needs then we turn it around back into the community and we help those mothers and teenagers and students.”

Slater, 19, thought she was going to be left out because she was the youngest on the Dumas squad, but instead she found herself a way to express herself.

“I’ve always really been into contact sports,” Slater said. “I wrestled when I was little. I was actually planning on coming to Amarillo to seek tryout for the Route 66 team, then we started ours. It helped me get through things. I’ve never really had a lot of girl friends. I’ve always been the tomboy of the group. I’ve gained a lot of friends. I enjoy it, it releases stress.”

“I was never that girl that was real popular in school. With derby I feel like I have more confidence in myself and I can be more of myself. I’ve always been that girl that stuck out a little bit. It’s just helped with confidence. With derby, nobody judges anyone.”